Building bridges between different cultures, literally

Cultural awareness is one of the key competences young professionals must be equipped with when doing business in a globalized world. At Antwerp Management School, students from several nationalities study and work together within an international environment on a daily basis. Still there are a lot of learnings, this valuable opportunity goes also along with challenges – the way of communication and problem-solving differs in every country and culture. Therefore, it is important to be aware of this fact as it may lead to potential conflicts when lacking of mutual cultural understanding. Antwerp Management School fosters the intercultural exchange and creating cultural awareness amongst students. In the past weeks, professor Banu Golesorkhi provided AMS students with precious knowledge about working in intercultural environments in a workshop and through gamification

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A message from Prof. Banu Golesorkhi

During October and November of 2017, Antwerp Management School’s graduate students from all Master programs were invited to participate in an intercultural simulation game. The primary objective of this dynamic, hands-on exercise was to raise awareness of the powerful impact of culture on collaboration, problem-solving and decision making.

After all, it is one thing to talk about cultural differences and quite another to experience it. Through a guided process, the students experienced the challenges and emotions involved in multicultural team-working and learned some personal and group strategies for collaborating more effectively across cultures. I am grateful for the creative energy of the students and for the good will with which they engaged in this activity. I wish them much success in their journey as global citizens. Here you will see their photographs and the unique bridges they built.

I also want to thank Dianne Hofner Saphiere, the creator of the game, Ecotonos, and the founder of the Cultural Detective, and AMS for investing in the development of intercultural awareness and competence.